Humor, Facts & Stats, Trivia and More

Anthony Bourdain’s Most Interesting Places to Eat in America Right Now

Despite getting his start in kitchens, as painstakingly detailed in his memoir Kitchen Confidential, Anthony Bourdain will be the first person to say he doesn’t have much of an interest in restaurants, at least not in the conventional sense.

Countries Difficult for Americans to Visit

In spite of broad generalizations that Americans have no interest in leaving their own borders, US citizens are traveling abroad in record numbers. According to the US National Tourism Office, nearly 67 million Americans chose to take an international trip in 2016. The world may be our oyster, but some countries impose harsh visa requirements that may hinder American tourism.

Beatle Beat Trivia

In the ‘The Beatles: A Hard Day’s Write” by Steve Turner (2017), John Lennon claimed there were two songs which were recycled from previous Beatle songs:

Anytime At All

Yes It Is

Name the previous songs in which they were based.

(answers below)

Every Berlin Neighborhood You Need to Know

Courtesy Erin Porter

Once made up of many small villages, Berlin is a sprawling city that can be confusing to travelers. Each of its twelve districts has its own feel and personality, so here’s what to keep in mind.

“Games of Thrones”-Themed Ice Hotel Opens in Finland

A “Game of Thrones”-themed ice hotel complete with a bar and a chapel for weddings has opened in northern Finland in a joint effort by a local hotel chain and the U.S. producers of the hit TV series.

Shaq Fits the Fun Ship Brand

Former basketball star Shaquille O’Neal is now Carnival’s newly-named Chief Fun Officer. Yes, Shaquille O’Neal. Of course it makes sense for he embodies the kind of people Carnival wants on its ships: social, happy and a tad goofy around the edges.

It Sifts from Leaden Sieves

A winter poem by Emily Dickinson

It sifts from leaden sieves,
It powders all the wood,
It fills with alabaster wool
The wrinkles of the road.

It makes an even face
Of mountain and of plain, —
Unbroken forehead from the east
Unto the east again.

It reaches to the fence,
It wraps it, rail by rail,
Till it is lost in fleeces;
It flings a crystal veil

On stump and stack and stem, —
The summer’s empty room,
Acres of seams where harvests were,
Recordless, but for them.

It ruffles wrists of posts,
As ankles of a queen, —
Then stills its artisans like ghosts,
Denying they have been.

Send Deb your favorite travel poems.

Here’s How Being in Power Messes With Your Brain, According to Science

From the bully on the playground to the big-wig in the corner office, power dynamics are everywhere in our lives.

Courtesy Hilary Brueck, BUSINESS INSIDER

A flood of allegations that powerful men in media, politics, and tech have been abusing their positions of power and preying on those below them have surfaced in recent months. High-profile figures including Harvey Weinstein, President Donald Trump, Kevin Spacey, Matt Lauer, Roy Moore and, Senator Al Franken and have been accused of various kinds of unwanted advances, including exposing themselves to co-workers and employees, groping, and rape. People are starting to wonder: Is there something about the rush of being in power that leads people to commit these despicable actions?

Science suggests that there are unusual things happening in the brains of power-holders.

Hands down, this Canadian gem is our pick for the most hilarious, madcap travel show on the cybersphere.

Here’s a look back as the Travel Guys take on Las Vegas.

Random Acts of Canine Kindness

Cedric the Dog takes a well-earned break after organizing a protest at an alt–right Neo-Nazi rally in Idaho.

Dog Quotations